


Stone Carvings

by Likesummerrainn



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:08:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24897454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Likesummerrainn/pseuds/Likesummerrainn
Summary: It’s not the question itself that worries him, that will come out with no problem. The problem lies in the set up to the question.Or:Zuko plans a proposal.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 180





	Stone Carvings

**Author's Note:**

> It's pure fluff. I wrote it in two hours because I was emotional.   
> Enjoy!

He practices it at least once every hour, taking some poor servant by surprise as he tries different ways to phrase the question. 

It’s not the question itself that worries him, that will come out with no problem. The problem lies in the set up  _ to  _ the question. 

But more important than that, he realizes, is the necklace. 

Her mother’s necklace flashes into view and Zuko now confronts the fact that he doesn’t know how to make one. 

He sketches one, part from memory, part from his own idea, and shows it to Uncle. If anyone should know about stuff like this, it would be Uncle, he thinks to himself. 

But Uncle takes the time to help him. Practicing first on small pieces of wood, carving the pattern until he thinks it’s right. 

The fire nation symbol carved onto a blue stone. 

And the stone itself is his own choice, one that he found on his travels to the Southern Water Tribe. Truth be told, he’d saved the stone for almost a year now with this intention. He’d just been too nervous to look at it, wrapped in fabric, and tucked away in his desk drawer. 

But now, as he pulled it out, running a gentle finger over the smooth surface of it, he was glad he’d brought it. The blue silk band comes from a merchant in town that he’d bought the last time she was here. 

He forces his hands to stay steady as he carves the stone, sitting out in the garden late one night. He keeps his hands calm as he threads the stone onto the band and holds it up in front of him. 

Excitement washes over him. It’s all beginning to come together, beginning to feel real for him, now. 

He has the important parts covered, but it’s everything else that has him worried.

He gets stuck on the smallest details of it. They have their story, one that would make anyone fall in love with them, one that would sweep her off her feet over and over again. But should he start at the beginning? The very beginning? 

“When I first met you, you threw the smallest water ball you could bend at my face, and your brother hit me with a boomerang.” 

No, the very beginning is too painful for them both, and it doesn’t exactly scream romantic.

But maybe that would be a good lead-in to their real story? Look how far they’ve come! Look how much they’ve grown with each other! 

“But then, after months of chasing you around the four nations, we connected. We fought side by side, and we became friends.” 

That’s it, that’s the stuff! 

“We were kids, we saved the world, you saved my life, over and over. It wasn’t love at first sight, no. But our love grew from almost nothing. We took something that shouldn’t have happened, and we made it into something beautiful.”

He recites this to himself as he walks through the halls of the palace. The maids walk by smiling, trying to quiet their aww’s and swoons as they listen. 

He blushes and walks faster. 

“We are, by all accounts, opposites. You, the moon, and I, the sun. Fire and Water, Tui and La, Yin and Yang. And that’s why our love is as strong as it is, because we are two forces that, when apart can damage and hurt, but together? Together we’re stronger than anything else. Which is why, Katara, after all these years of...of...knowing you...of loving you, I know for sure that…” 

She’s not even in front of him, yet. It’s only a test run in front of his Uncle, who is already crying, and Zuko can’t even finish the thought. And part of that could be due to his Uncle pulling him into a tight hug and cutting him off. 

But it’s also because he can’t bear to say the words before she’s with him. He doesn’t want to say it to an empty space in front of him, he wants to say them to her and watch her eyes as he does and hold her hands as he speaks. 

He needs to feel her next to him, then he’ll be able to do all of this without a problem. 

But now his thoughts go back to the nitty gritty. 

Should it be sitting down? If he tells the whole story while they’re standing, it may take too long, she may get tired. She might not even hear him ask when he finally does. 

No, they should be sitting. 

But, outside? In the worst heatwave the nation has seen in almost a decade? 

She hates the sticky heat they face in the summers, she might be annoyed at the little bugs that like to crawl over whatever’s in their way, she might not even pay attention to him if they sit outside. 

No, not outside. 

Unless! 

Unless they sit under her favorite tree! 

Yes, that could work! 

But there’s a field trip of small children running around the palace right now, the garden is always the spot where they take a break, so they may not get their privacy. 

Worse, it might not get cleaned up in time for him to lead her out there. 

No, he’ll wait until it’s dark, under the moon. That’s romantic, isn’t it? She loves the moon, the moon is her thing, it’s her power source, it would show her that he’s making it all about her, which it is! 

Yes, that’ll work, that’ll be perfect. 

Maybe it’ll even cool down by then. 

Unless she’s too tired after dinner? That might be a problem, she might fall asleep halfway through his story. And he won’t be able to stick the landing if he has to wake her up. She’ll feel bad for falling asleep, he’ll feel bad for waking her up, they’ll both feel bad that they’re so tired and they’ll call it a night and go to bed and he’ll wake up the next morning and go through this all over again. 

No. 

It’ll be at night, out in the garden, before dinner. They’ll just eat late, that’s all. 

“Katara, will you…” 

He thinks he can say them, now. 

He made his decision a week ago, after news that she would be arriving today. She was held up in her tribe, she didn’t expect it to take so long, but she would be with him soon. 

Reading her letter, the words popped into his head and he knew what he had to do next. 

So he spent the past week redecorating. 

The servants and maids offered their help, over and over, but he only waved them off. 

He needed to do it himself, he wanted to do it himself, for her. 

He cleaned every inch of his bedroom. He changed the sheets, not all on his own, as his bed proved to be a task far more challenging than he thought. One of the maids finally took pity on him and helped in spite of his protests. 

He moved the furniture around until it felt right, and until his limbs turned to jelly. 

Great Firelord Zuko, defeated by a chest of drawers too heavy for him to move. 

Cursed be the sturdy craftsmanship of his ancestors. 

But sitting at the edge of his bed, he wondered if it would all be in vain. 

What if she said no? 

He would not push her if she said no, would take the answer with all the grace and poise of a leader. 

But his heart ached at the thought, and he wanted to push it deep down and away where it could not intrude. 

But it was still a possibility. 

It had been seven years since they fought side by side. 

And it had been three years since she kissed him at sunrise, taking him by surprise. 

Not once had she shown signs of hesitation in those years towards him. 

Not for anything. 

And his Uncle’s smile when he offered the thought told him enough. 

“She won’t say no.” 

“How can you be so sure?” 

“Because I have seen the way you two look at each other. That is a love stronger than anything else in this world. It comes from something more than physical. It is a love that fate has written for you. And nothing can stop that.”

It is fate that they are together. 

He can believe that. 

But he worries and nitpicks and agonizes over every little detail that he has successfully annoyed every single member of the Palace but he can’t stop. 

Until she arrives. 

Just as the sun rises, she appears in the garden where he’s sitting by the pond, feeding the animals. 

She covers his eyes with her hands and in that moment he feels every ounce of stress and worry vanish from his body. 

She’s here, and that’s all he cares about. 

“You’re early,” he says, pulling her hands down to his lips. 

“Made good timing,” she tells him, pressing a kiss to his temple, still crouched behind him. 

They stay like that for a moment, watching as the turtle ducks swim around, as the first hazy rays of sun give way to its full light and heat. 

He has their day planned, down to the last minute until he asks her. 

She sleeps, first, taking the time to rest and give him time to do the work he should actually be doing instead of fussing over place settings. 

She wakes in time for them to have lunch together, and then a walk through the city, distracting themselves with visits to monuments, shopping in the markets, sharing everything they’ve missed in the time since they were last together. 

By the time the palace comes into view again, it is almost sunset. 

From the other side, two single file lines of school children walk past them and bow to him and wave excitedly to her. 

Good, that means the garden will be empty for them soon. 

“You’ve been acting funny all day,” she says, linking her arm with his as they walk. 

“What?” he asks, unsure what the correct answer to that would be. 

“Is everything alright?” she asks, sincerely, looking at him with worry. 

He hates it when she looks at him like that. He hates making her worry like that. 

“Yeah, fine, good, everything’s fine,” he says, instead, hoping it’s enough. 

“What’re you not telling me?” she asks. 

“Nothing, I just wanted to get inside where it’s cooler. I know it’s really hot and you don’t, you know, you don’t like it, so…” he trails off. 

She smiles at that, and hugs him tighter. 

“You’re sweet,” she mumbles, ruffling his hair. 

“I was thinking we would have dinner later,” he says as they enter. Servants are eyeing them both, trying not to be obvious, but the excitement in them is too much to contain. 

“Something big happening?” she asks. 

A maid passing by can’t contain her laughter. Zuko gives her a desperate look,  _ please don’t spoil it, not yet _ . 

The maid presses a finger to her lips and nods and keeps walking, still smiling. 

“No, just...why don’t we go to the garden?” he asks. “Full moon tonight, right?” he asks. 

She raises her eyebrows at him, suggestively, and he feels his cheeks grow hot. 

“Sounds like a great idea,” she says. 

She’s talking, and he’s trying to listen, but he’s practicing his own speech. He thinks he has it down, perfect. The necklace is safe in its velvet box, in the pocket of his robe. He drops his hand to the spot every few minutes to make sure it’s still there. 

As they enter the garden, it’s still right where it’s supposed to be. 

She’s quiet now, watching the sky above, blue and grey night drowning the last of the day, and sighs. 

“Katara,” he says, and his hands begin to shake and his heart begins to beat faster and faster and when she looks at him, eyes wide and full of love he forgets everything he had planned for this moment and just says. 

“Will you marry me?” 

The question takes her by surprise, and she takes the tiniest step back, as if to get a better look at him. 

He closes his eyes and groans, rubbing his face, annoyed. 

“That’s not how I was supposed to say it,” he mumbles. 

“What?” she asks. 

His shoulders drop and he exhales, 

“I had...a speech,” he mumbles, looking up at the moon. “I had a whole speech prepared. I’d been rehearsing it all week. I had it all planned out, too. We were going to sit on that bench under your favorite tree. We were going to look up at the moon, and I was going to talk about our lives and everything we went through and…” 

He stops there, still looking up, afraid to look at her. 

“Zuko,” she says, quietly, tugging on his sleeve to get him to look at her. 

“I’m sorry,” he says. 

“What was the speech?” she asks, smiling softly. 

“You wanna hear it?” he asks, surprised. 

She nods, 

“If you spent so much time on it, it has to be good,” she insists. 

He smiles in relief, dropping his head, his forehead touching hers. 

“Well, I was going to start when we first met,” he said. 

“When you tried to destroy my tribe?” she asks, concerned. 

“Yeah, I wasn’t sure if I should or not but...I thought it might be, you know, a nice...set up?” he offers. 

“For…?” she prods. 

“For us. How we changed. How we grew up. I mean, I know we didn’t  _ grow up _ together, but we did a lot of growing together that summer.” 

She nods, eyes fixed on him, smiling a little bit wider as he continues. 

So he leads them to the bench, still talking, reciting his speech from memory as they walk, all the while she holds onto him. 

“We’re...opposites,” is the part he reaches when his voice finally cracks over the words. There are small tears forming in her eyes, too, but she’s not doing anything about them. She smiles and nods for him to continue. He takes a shaky breath and takes her hands in his, holding them gently, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. 

“We are opposites but...that’s what makes us stronger. You...give me courage, and hope, even on the days when I have none. You have been by my side for the last seven years, not always physically, but...still there, walking right beside me while I...I tried to be better. And I am. With you I am better. And when I’m with you, it’s something so strong, like fate has bound us together as more than just...warriors. Fate has written something great for us. So, I wanted to ask…” 

“Yes,” she says, cutting him off for the first time since he started talking. She’s nodding excitedly, crying and he feels tears on his cheeks, too, now. 

“Will you marry me,” he finishes. She has his face in her hands now, kissing him hard and deep, her hands trembling as they hold him. It stops only when he puts his hands over hers. 

She presses her forehead against his, the two of them sitting under the light of the full moon, their tears subsiding, their hiccups and sniffling fading, his hands running through her hair. 

“I’m glad I waited for the speech,” she finally says, her voice hoarse. 

“It was a lot better when I said it to the door this morning,” he says. 

“What a lucky door,” she whispers. 

He kisses her again, softer, this time. 

“I had a lot more planned, too,” he says, sitting up straight. His back cries out as he straightens it, but he ignores it as she rests her head on his chest. 

“Like what?” she asks. 

“I rearranged my bedroom. All on my own, I think you’ll like it, too. I tried a lot of different spots before this one, so I’ve asked a lot of inanimate objects around the palace to marry me.” 

“I feel so special,” she teases. 

“Oh!” he says, suddenly remembering the velvet box in his robes. “I can’t believe I proposed without this,” he mumbles to himself, pulling it out. 

His hands are shaking, again, and he tries to open it as carefully as possible, facing it towards her. 

The moonlight glints off the stone and he swears, for a moment, the entire garden seems brighter. Tears form again in her eyes, and she stares, her mouth slightly open, hands clapped together tight. 

“It’s beautiful,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper. 

“I made it myself. I got the stone from your tribe, the last time I was there. And I carved the fire nation symbol on it, you know. It’s...like us. Two nations, as one. I know it’s not...it’s not perfect, and it’s not like your mother’s necklace, but...I...” he stops, not sure what else he can say about it. 

But she seems to like it as the tears flood out of her eyes. He’s startled, for a moment, at how hard she’s crying. But she pulls him back to her and kisses him again, the box pressing uncomfortably between them both. 

“Do I have to put it on myself?” she asks against his lips. He smiles, and he moves around her, legs and hands both trembling, to put it on her. 

She pulls her hair to the side and for a moment he stares at the grace of her movements, the smell of her perfume, and the moonlight against her skin. For a moment he just stops, breathless over her. 

She turns her head slightly, to look at him, and he remembers what he has to do next. 

Her hands are trembling, too, he sees, holding her hair aside. He works carefully, hoping the necklace fits, that it doesn’t fall off, that it isn’t too tight against her neck. But the clasps finally come together and he lets out a sigh of relief. His hands are on her shoulders now, and he kisses her neck, just above the necklace, and smiles at the way she shudders. 

“I hope no other object got a necklace,” she finally says, turning to face him, brushing her fingers against the stone pendant.

He laces their fingers together, bringing her hand to his lips to kiss it,

“Only you.” 


End file.
